Means for feeding bags, &amp;c., to printing-presses.



No. 729,213. 7 PATENTED MAY 26, 1903.

G. H. PALMERG: J. W. DENMEAD. MEANS FOR FEEDING BAGS, &0., TO PRINTING PRESSES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 6, 1900.

N0 MODEL.

3 SHEETS-411E111 1.

PATBNTED MAY 26, 1903. o. H. PALMER & J. w. EENMEAD, MEANS FOR FEEDING BAGS, &0., T0 PRINTING PRESSES.

APPLICATION FILED SBP1.6, 1900.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- N0 MODEL No. 729,213. I PATENTED MAY26, 1903. G. H. PALMER '& J. W. DENMEAD.

MEANS FOR FEEDING BAGS, &0., TO PRINTING PRESSES.

APPLICATION FILED 8321'. a, 1900. A N0 MODEL. a snnms-snnm a.

1 V Q :W' I E v UNITED STATES- Patented May 26, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. PALMER AND JOHN W. DENMEAD, OF AKRON, OHIO, ASSIGNORS TO THE DIAMOND MATCH COMPANY, OF NEWV YORK, N.'Y., A OORPORA- TION OF ILLINOIS.

MEANS FOR FEEDING BAGS, 800., TO PRINTING-PRESSES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No". 729,213, dated May 26, 1903. Application filed September 6 1900. Serial No. 29,201. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, CHARLES H. PALMER and JOHN W. DENMEAD, of Akron, in the county of Summit, and in the State of Ohio,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Feeding Bags, &c., to Printing-Presses; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to [O the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective View of portion of a printing-press provided with our bag-feeding means. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof with parts in section. Fig. 3 is a detail view :5 in cross-section on the line a; no of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 4 is a detail view of a portion of the feedtable.

Letters of like name and kind refer to like parts in each of the figures.

The object of our invention is to enable bags or sacks, sheets, &c., to be fed to printing-presses at a higher rate of speed than has heretofore been possible and under conditions that will permit the most convenient replenishing of the pile of work and without interference with the operation'of feeding therefrom to the press; and to such ends said invention consists in the feeding means having the features of construction and arrangement substantially as hereinafter specified.

More especially, our invention has been devised for printing bags or sacks which as they come from the bagmachine are flat with the bottom folded, so that it overlaps a 3 5 portion of the surface on which it is desired to print and requiring, therefore, to be moved out of the way for the printing. We shall accordingly illustrate and describe our invention as adapted to feeding bags of such description.

We illustrate our invention for feeding bags to a rotary printing-press, but a portion of which, however, is shown, which comprises a part of the frame A, a part of the impression- 5 cylinder B, and a set of nippers C and O on a rock-shaft D, the latter being, as usual, automatically actuated to move the nippers to and from clamping position by mechanism not requiring description. At a point near a horizontal plane passing through the cylinder-axis is a table E for the support of bags to be printed, the table, as shown, being supported at one end by a bracket F, bolted to the press-frame A, and at the other end by a standard G. On the upper side of the table, extending lengthwise thereof, is a pair of parallel bars or rails H and H, on which the pile or stack of bags Irests, and rising from the table adjacent to the ends of said rails nearer the press are one or more thin bars or plates K and K, that incline toward the press, there being, preferably, two of them and placed, respectively, at the sides of the bars or rails. At the side of each bar or rail, at the inner end thereof, is a bar L, having an inclined upper side and longitudinally adjustable, being for this reason provided with a longitudinal slot Z, through which passes a bolt M, that also passes through the rail and by which the bar L may be securely held in the position in which it may be placed.

The operation of turning and feeding the bags is as follows: The stack or pile of bags is placed upon the bars or rails H and H, with the bottoms of the bags near the inclined bars or plates K and K. With a tool in his hand, which may be a simple piece of sheet metal, the operator, passing the tool under the portion of the bag-bottom that overlaps the bag and catching the bag at the fold or crease, slides the bag off the top of the pile until the forward edge thereof strikes the bars or plates K and K and continuing the pressure causes such forward edge to descend until it meets and is arrested by the bars L and L and the bottom is turned over against said plates K and K, with the bag-overlapping portion of the bottom being lifted from the bag and the edge of such portion in position to be caught by the nippers when they are brought opposite the same by the revolution of the cylinder. Being caught by the nippers and by reason of the fact that it is presented to the cylinder in a plane that intersects the periphery of the cylinder, the bag is drawn upon the cylinder so that the position of the bottom relative to the bag is reversed from its original position, that portion of the surface of the bottom which was next the bag being outward and in line with the surface of the bag against which it lies. It will be perceived that the operations of feeding and turning are performed by what is virtually a single act and that the crease 01' fold in the bag in its original condition is so made use of in the operation as to eliminate the possibility of a slip or misfeed of the bag. By reason of the location of the tab e so that the bag is fed to the cylinder in a plane that intersects the cylinder-periphery in or substantially in line with the cylinderaxis the bottom does not, by a great deal, have to be fully turned over to the position itwould have to be turned for printing should the line of feed be tangential, and hence the feed can be very much more rapid than in the latter case. Another thing conducing to rapidity of feed is that as soon as the bag is caught by the nippers it is raised from the pile and not drawn bodily horizontally along the same, and thus gives immediate access to the next bag for feeding, so that the. feed of bags is virtually continuous, and by reason of the lifting of the bag there is no disturbance of the others on the pile. In replenishing the pile or stack of bags the new supply is thrust beneath the portion of the pile still remaining-on the table, and this can be done without stopping of or interference with the work of the feeder, and by reason of the comparatively low position of the table, due to feeding in a radial or substantially radial plane to the cylinder and not tangentially thereto, the work of placing bags on the table is greatly facilitated.

Any adjustment for gaging that may be necessary is obtained by means of the-bars L and L, which on being moved longitudinally to difierent positions present by reason of their inclined bag-engaging surfaces at higher or lower surface in position to be engaged by the bags. It will be observed that gaging is done not by the forward end of the bag when in position to-go on the cylinder, but by the opposite edge of the bagbottom which engages the bars L and L.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is- 1. In combination with a printing-press, a feed-table and an obstruction in the path of the article to be printed to cause the turning of a folded portion of the same preparatory to printing, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In combination with a printing-press, a feed-table adapted to support a pile of bags or the like, having folds, and means comprising an obstruction or part in the path of the article to be printed whereby the bag or part having the fold, in being fed to the press, has its folded portion turned, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In combination with a printing-press, a feed-table adapted to support a pile of bags having folded portions, and an obstruction in the path of the feed of the bags to the press, causing the turning of the folded portion as the bag is fed to the press, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. In combination with a printing-press, a feed-table and an inclined plate or plates adjacent to the press, that is engaged by the article to be printed on its way to the press, and causes the turning of a folded portion of the same, preparatory to printing, substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. In a press for printing bags, &c. the combination of the impression-cylinder, its nippers, a feed-table, a part in the path of bags whereby the folded-over bottom portion thereof is turned, and an edge thereof presented in position for engagement by the nippers, substantially as and for the purpose described.

t 6. In a press for printing bags, &c. the combination of a feed-table, a part in the path of bags whereby the folded-over bottom portion thereof is turned, and an adjustable support for one of the edges of such bottom portion, substantiallyas and for the purpose described.

7. In a press for printing bags,&c., the combination of a feed-table, bars or rails thereon for bags to rest on, a bar-engaging plate or plates, and adjustable bars with inclined surfaces, substantially as and for the purpose described.

8. In combination with the cylinder of a rotary printing-press, a feed-table situated so that the feed therefrom is in a direction that intersects the cylinder-periphery, the direction of revolution of the cylinder being such as to lift the article to be printed from the table, substantially as and for the purpose described.

9. In combination with a rotary printingpress, a feed-table situated so that the feed therefrom is in a direction that intersects the periphery of the impression-cylinder, in or substantially in a plane passing through the cylinder-axis, the direction of revolution of the cylinder being such as to lift the article to be printed from the table, substantially as and for the purpose described.

10. In combination with a rotary printingpress, a feed-table situated so that the feed therefrom is in a direction that intersects the periphery of the impression-cylinder, and a fold-turning device in the line of feed, substantially as and for the purpose described.

11. In combination with a rotary printingpress, a feed-table situated so that the feed therefrom is in a direction that intersects the periphery of the impression-cylinder, and an obstruction on the feed-table in the path of articles fed to the impression-cylinder which, by the movement of the article over the same, causes the turning of a folded portion thereof preparatory to printing.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto set our hands this 6th day of August, 1900.

CHARLES H. PALMER. JOHN W. DENMEAD.

Witnesses:

ToM A. PALMER, B. 0. Ross. 

